Eave trough



Aug. 19, 1958 AIA. L. PoND EAVE THOUGH Filed April 22, 1954 INI/Emol@ fllfo'd L. Pond BY y A TTOENEY United States Patent C "ice EAVE TROUGH Alford L. Pond, Flint, Mich.

Application April 22, 1954, Serial No. 424,874

6 Claims. (Cl. '10S-30) The present invention relates to an eave trough, and it consists in the combinations, constructions, and arrangement of parts herein described and claimed.

Heretofore, the general practice has been to construct eave troughs either semicircular in cross section or of a cross section having spaced upstanding inner and outer walls that are connected by a bottom wall. In both cases, the top of the trough is completely open for catching water from a roof. Such open-top constructions permit the free entrance of leaves and other foreign matter into the troughs which often accumulate in large quantities and interfere with proper drainage of water from the troughs. This is exceptionally true in troughs on modern rambler or ranch-type houses where the eaves of the roof are constructed With long, uninterrupted spans and the inclination of the troughs are held to a minimum for the sake of appearance. If it were not for the fact that the roof eaves on these types of houses are substantially on the same elevation as that ofthe line of vision of a standing person, the angle of the eave trough relative to the roof eave for drainage purposes could be materially increased without presenting a distorted appearance to the house construction.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved eave trough that materially decreases the entrance of foreign matter therein and which is of a construction whereby the outside appearance thereof indicates parallelism with the roof eave to which it is attached.

Another object of the invention is to provide in a device of the character set forth, novel means for adjustably positioning the bottom of the trough on an angle extending longitudinally of the trough and relative to an outer side wall of said trough.

A further object of the invention is to provide an eave trough of box-shaped cross section, wherein the upper wall thereof is perforated and declined toward the edge of the roof eave and wherein an extension from the material forming said upper wall is adapted to be extended a substantial distance up the roof between the planking and roo-ting material of the roof and thereby form a perforated valley of the inward portion of the upper wall of the trough.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character set forth which is simple and substantial in construction, inexpensive to manufacture, and thoroughly ecient and practical in use.

Other and further objects of the invention will become apparent from a reading of the following specification taken in conjunction with the drawings in which:

Figure l is a side elevational view of the invention with portions thereof broken away;

Figure 2 is an isometric sectional view taken substantially on line 2-2 of Figure l, and showing a roof eave construction to which the eave trough is shown attached; and

Figure 3 is a cross section through the eave trough at la different location from that shown in Figure 2 to illus- Patented Aug. 19, 1958 trate the difference in elevation of the inclined bottom wall of the trough.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, there is shown an eave trough constructed of three sheet metal parts, indicated generally by the numerals 10, 11, and 12, which are bent and associated relative to one -another to form a box-shaped cross section having inner and outer side walls 13 and 14, respectively, a bottom wall 15, and a top wall 16. The part also has a bent portion 0 which, together with a portion of the part 12, provides a vertical wall 17 that is a continuation of the inner side Wall 13 and extends a short distance upwardly from the inner upper corner of the box section before both parts 10 and 12 are bent to provide an attaching flange 1S that extends inwardly at an obtuse angle from the vertical wall 17. The angle of the attaching ange 18 corresponds to the angle of inclination of the roof to which the eave trough is attached.

The sheet metal part 10, besides forming a portion of the vertical wall 17 above the box section with a panel 19 thereof and a portion of the attaching flange 18 with another panel 20 bent from the panel 19, also is bent outwardly from the panel 19 to provide a panel 21 that forms the top wall 16 of the box section and is further `bent downwardly to provide another panel 22 that forms a portion of the outer side wall 14. The bends joining the top panel 21 to the vertical panels 19 and 22 are both at acute angles, thus arranging the top panel 21 on an angle that slants downwardly from the upper portion of the forward vertical panel 22 to the lower portion of the vertical panel 19 and thereby forming a valley 23 at the adjoining portions of the panels 21 and 19. A plurality of holes or large perforations 24 of desirable size and shape is provided in the valley portion of the panel 21 through which water received in the valley may drain into the box section of the trough. At the lower edge portion of the forward panel 22, the sheet metal part 10 -is rst bent outwardly, then downwardly, then inwardly, and then upwardly, as at 25, to not only stiien the free edge portion of the panel 22, but to provide a decorative molding for rendering the eave trough more pleasing in appearance.

The sheet metal part 12, which has previously been partially described, is of angle formation and consists of two panels 26 and 27 bent at an obtuse angle to one another. The panel 26 is arranged vertically and is spaced slightly inward of the vertical panel 19 and forms portions of the vertical walls 13 and 17, while the other panel 27 lies directly under the panel 20 and forms a portion of the attaching ange 18. v

The remaining sheet metal part 11 is U-shaped in cross section and consists of a bottom panel 28 and inner and outer parallel side panels 29 and 30 which form the bottom 15 and portions of the inner and outer side walls 13 and 14, respectively, of the box section of the trough. The side panels 29 and 30 are spaced apart a distance to effect engagement of their outer surfaces with the inner surfaces of the panels 26 and 22, respectively, of the sheet metal parts 12 and 10 are held in such engagement by a plurality of bolts 31 extending entirely across the box section and through openings 32 in the panels 22, 30, 29, and 26. Heads 33 on the ends of the bolts 31 and nut and washer 34 and 35 on their opposite ends hold the parts 10, 11, and 12 together. As shown in dotted lines in Figure l and full lines in Figure 3, it will be seen that the U-shaped part 11 is arranged at an angle longitudinally of the trough to permit drainage along the trough. This angle may vary to a considerable degree without fbeing readily observed because of the fact that the U-shaped part which provides the bottom w-all of the trough is behind the forward panel 22 of the part 10 and because said Ushaped part does not extend below the lowerrnost portion of the decorative molding 2S on said panel. Also, it should be observed that slight spacing of the panels 19 and 26 provides a recess into which the upper edge portion of the panel 29 extends which, besides aiding in the support of the panel 29, positions the upper edge of the p auel 29 above the valley 2 3 and thus prevents seepage between the panels 29 and 2,6.

The sheet metal parts 1,0, 11, and 12 can be made in sections of lengths convenient for handling, and similar sections slightly telescoped together to provide suflicient overlap to prevent leakage. In Figure 1, sections of part are shown overlapped, as at 36, while sections of part 12 are shown at another location in dotted lines overlapped, asV at 37. This staggering of the joints of sections 0f different parts adds rigidity to the trough at such connections. The end sections of the U-shaped part 1l where the eave trough terminates are provided with end walls, such as shown in dotted lines in Figure l and indicated by the numeral 38. Should such end of the trough be the one toward which water is drained, the bottom panel 28 is provided with a drop outlet 39 to which a conductor pipe is tted.

In Figure 2, there is shown a portion of a simple type eave construction of a roof and a manner of attachment of the improved eave trough thereto. Flanking 41 of the proof projects slightly over the siding 42, and a strip 43 has been secured to the outer face of the siding against which the inner wall 13 of the eave trough box section rests. The attaching ange 18 consisting of the panels 20 and 27 rests on the planking 41 and is nailed thereto, as indicated by the numeral 44. The lrooting material 45 which covers the planking 41 also covers the attaching flange 20, and said ange is of such a width that it extends upward on the roof a sufficient distance to be overlapped by a second row of shingles should the roofing material comprise shingles. It can readily be seen that should the angle from which the flange 18 projects from the walls 13 and 17 differ from the angle of inclination of the roof, it is a simple matter to bend the ange to an angle in accordance to that of the roof.

The eave trough may be attached to the roof either before or after the U-shaped bottom sections 11 that determine the fall for drainage are adjusted to the proper angle and are secured to the other sections 10 and 12. A simple and practical manner of installation is to attach the eave trough to the roof with all parts thereof parallel with the edge of the eave of the roof and before permanent attachment of the U-shaped bottom sections 11 to the other sections. After such attachment and adjustment of the bottom sections to the proper angle for drainage, the holes 32 for the bolts 31 are then drilled through the various parts. When the bolts are assembled, all parts will then be held in proper positions relative to one another.

lt should also be observed that the parts 11 and 12 alone perform all functions an ordinary eave trough is capable of performing, and in addition thereto, contain the features of an adjustable bottom and a novel attachment to a roof, and that the part 10 provides a perforated cover, a concealment apron, and reinforcement structure on an eave trough constructed of parts 11 and 12.

While I have herein described a specic form which the invention may take, it will be understood that changes and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art which still fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. An eave trough comprising a piece of sheet metal of an angle shape in cross section and having one panel extending at an obtuse angle from the other panel thereof, one of said panels being positioned substantially vertical and adapted to forma portion of an inner vertical wall of a trough while theother panel is at an angle similar to the inclination of a roof to which it is adapted to be attached; a second piece of vsheet metal substantially perforated third panel arranged at acute angles thereto and from which one of said vertical panels extends downwardly and the other extends upwardly, said third piece of sheet metal also having a fourth panel that projects at an obtuse angle from the upwardly extending vertical panel thereof, said downwardly extending vertical panel of said third piece of sheet metal being positioned outwardly of the outer side panel of said U-shaped part while the other vertical panel of said third-mentioned sheet metal part is positioned adjacent and parallel to the vertical panel of said first-mentioned angle part and thereby positioning the perforated panel that connects said vertical panels over said second-mentioned U-shaped part and also positioning the panel extending at an obtuse angle from the upstanding vertical panel of said third-mentioned piece of sheet metal over the obtuse angled panel of the first-mentioned angle part; and attaching means for all pieces of sheet metal parts whereby said second-mentioned U-shaped part is positioned at an angle extending longitudinally of the trough and relative to said iirstand third-mentioned parts.

2. An eave trough as defined in claim 1 wherein said downwardly extending vertical panel of said third-mentioned sheet metal piece completely overlaps the outer side panel of said second-mentioned U-shaped sheet metal piece independent of the angled relationship of said U-shaped piece relative to the firstand third-mentioned sheet metal pieces.

3. An eave trough as defined in claim l wherein said upstanding vertical panel of said third-mentioned sheet metal piece is slightly spaced forwardly from the vertical panel of said first-mentioned angle piece and the upper edge portion of the inner side wall of said second-mentioned U-shaped sheet metal piece is received in the space between said vertical panels of said irstand third-mentioned pieces.

4. An eave trough as defined in claim 1 wherein said attaching means for said sheet metal parts and the maintaining of the second-mentioned U-shaped piece at an angle relative `to said firstand third-mentioned parts consist of fasteners extended through aligned openings provided in the downwardly extending vertical panel of the third-mentioned piece, both side panels of said second-mentioned U-shaped piece, and the vertical panel of said first-mentioned angle piece.

5. An eave trough comprising a piece of sheet metal of an angle shape in cross section and having one panel extending at an obtuse angle from the other panel thereof, one of said panels being positioned substantially vertical while the other panel is at an angle similar to the inclination of a roof to which it is adapted to be attached; a second piece of sheet metal substantially U-.shaped in cross section and having one of its side panels positioned alongside the vertical panel of said angle part so as to form the inner side wall of the trough while the other side panel and intermediate panel form an outer side wall and a bottom wall, respectively, of the trough; a third piece of sheet metal bent longitudinally thereof to provide a plurality of panels that everlie the outer side panel of said second-mentioned U-shaped sheet metal part, the space lbetween the outer and inner side panels of said second-mentioned U-shaped part, and at least a portion of the panel of said first-mentioned sheet metal part extending at an obtuse angle, said panel of said third-mentioned part overlying the space between the outer and inner side panels of said second-mentioned U-shaped part being provided with a plurality of openings therethrough for drainage into said U-shaped part,

said panel of said third-mentioned part that overlies the outer side panel of said second-mentioned U-shaped part and the vertical panel of said first-mentioned part together providing an open bottom structure into which said second-mentioned U-shaped part is positioned; and attaching means forsaid sheet metal parts whereby said second-mentioned U-shaped part is positioned at an angle extending longitudinally of the trough and relative to said rstand third-mentioned parts.

6. An eave trough comprising a piece of sheet metal of an angle shape in cross section and having one panel extending at an obtuse angle from the other panel thereof, one of said panels being positioned substantially vertical While the other panel is at an angle similar to the inclination of a roof to which it is adapted to be attached; a second piece of sheet metal substantially U-shaped in cross section and having one of its side panels positioned alongside the vertical panel of said angle part so as to form the inner side wall of the trough while the other side panel and intermediate panel form an outer side wall and a bottom wall, respectively, of the trough; a third piece of sheet metal bent longitudinally thereof to provide a plurality of panels that overlie the outer side panel of said second-mentioned U-shaped sheet metal part, the space between the outer and inner side panels of said secondmentioned U-shaped part, and at least a portion of the panel of said rst-mentioned sheet metal part extending at an obtuse angle, said panel of said third-mentioned part overlying the space between the outer and inner side panels of said second-mentioned U-shaped part being pro vided with a plurality of openings therethrough for drainage into said U-shaped part, said panel of said third-mentioned sheet metal part that overlies the outer side panel of said second-mentioned U-shaped part being of a depth to completely cover said outer side panel independent of the angled relationship of said U-shaped part relative to the rstand third-mentioned parts; and attaching means for said sheet metal parts whereby said second-mentioned U-shaped part is positioned at an angle extending longitudinally of the trough and relative to said irstand third-mentioned parts.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 453,948 VSmith et al. June 9, 1891 929,684 Mills Aug. 3, 1909 1,343,461 Marberg June 15, 1920 1,564,032 Stuckert Dec. 1, 1925 1,695,583 Goldberg Dec. 18, 1928 2,175,138 Westlake Oct. 3, 1939 2,583,422 Haddon Jan. 22, 1952 2,611,934 Milone Sept. 30, 1952 2,674,961 Lake Apr. 13, 1954 

